LemonClan: An Apprentice's Tail
by Wildebunny the Eternal
Summary: Depravity through the eyes of innocence.
1. An Apprentice's Tail

**A/N: This story contains lots of lemons.**

 **Chapter 1: An Apprentice's Tail**

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Sirepaw lived with LemonClan. Normally, a gathering was a joyous occasion, they always had entertainment however this gathering was different. He was hungry and quivering with trepidation. Lemonstar was going to announce his assessment. Every cat that he knew of had to pass an assessment to become full members of the clan. He looked forward to partaking in the festivities but slightly less than half even survived.

He starved himself in preparation for the event, his white pelt would've been unkempt and dirty if it wasn't for his mentor Hottail who decided to make a fuss over him. She groomed his pelt and was jealous of Hollowheart who seemed to be popular when these meetings happened.

"Let all cats old enough to obtain their meals gather in the Hollow Heart," Lemonstar declared. The Hollow Heart was an empty house that was free of twolegs. The cats used it as their home when winter came.

The star of every meeting was Hollowheart. Nearly all the male warriors lined up for their turns to play with her only a few showed no interest. Sirepaw watched these events with eager anticipation, he was too young to take part, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. He remembered after every meeting Hollowheart would be crying. Milk covered her normally blue fur after each event which she had the luxury of licking herself clean. Milk was Sirepaw's favorite treat before his twolegs abandoned him. His mentor Hottail explained, "Hollowheart is very lucky. That's why she's happy nearly all the time." He could have sworn that he saw Hollowheart crying when she thought no one was around. Her pelt seemed less and less well groomed with each passing day.

"Sirepaw's assessment will happen tomorrow. Dismissed," Lemonstar said.

The meeting was over, but the festivities continued with Hollowheart being the star attraction. He saw four male warriors taking part. He heard Hollowheart's struggles, she seemed to be in pain and genuinely hating the event. Hottail explained, "If she hated it. She would leave the clan."

Sirepaw himself contemplated running away before it was time for his assessment, but he was too frightened and scared of what may happen if he did. Before Hottail found him, he was barely alive subsisting off twoleg rubbish after his owners abandoned him. He tried approaching other twolegs but they all turned him away. There was nowhere to go except LemonClan, and that's why he stayed.

"Can't you take me somewhere? The assessment is too dangerous," Sirepaw said.

"If I knew anywhere that was safe, I would take you away, the forest is dangerous, no one who entered it ever returned," Hottail said. It was easier to look at Hottail at night, when the sun's rays didn't cause her golden pelt to blind him. She was an extremely attractive she-cat that he never saw with another tom despite all the moons of living together in LemonClan. "You yourself know how hard life in the city could be."

"What if I don't survive?" he asked.

"I believe you will, you're not my first apprentice. My third, none of the others lived, I have to be lucky sometime. I watched them die from the assessment not allowed to help. Not allowed to act." Tears clouded his mentor's piercing blue eyes as she relived the memories.

It wasn't that LemonClan was a bad place to live, cats cared for each other. Lemonstar forged the clan and improved life for cats in the twoleg place. To keep their numbers from growing too much lest they incur the wrath of the twolegs, Lemonstar created a trial based on his kithood dares, he consumed four lemons and lived back then. Not every feline can consume four lemons and survive thus they became LemonClan. A clan of cats that were kind towards each other, but ruthlessly cast off the weak. That's how his mentor explained the customs.

"Cheer up, you'll be allowed to partake in the festivities that happen during the meetings once you become a warrior. You'll be able to have fun with Hollowheart just like every other tom in the clan," Hottail said.

He heard some contempt for Hollowheart as she mentioned her name. "Yes, it's just tomorrow and a week." He would be able to taste milk once more, something he loved before his twolegs cast him out. Tomorrow, and a week if he survived, life would be good. With his mentor's words, he was able to fall asleep. There were twenty apprentices by the end of their training, slightly less than half would survive.

His mentor roused him from his slumber. He barely had any energy to move. He was starving but not looking forward to his assessment or meal. As hungry as he was, eating lemons still didn't seem appealing.

Lemonstar picked four cast to help with his assessment. They were cats with renown within the clan, each had multiple accomplishments to their name that made them unusual or someone to envy. Rapidclaw was a ginger tom with multiple scars. He often saved cats from dogs. He went further than that, he killed whenever he could. He wore a necklace made of dog's teeth. Sirepaw didn't know how Rapidclaw created that repulsive item.

Applebob was the ugliest tomcat in existence. His brown pelt had multiple scars inflicted on by his previous owners instead of from heroic feats. He even kept his original kittypet name. He had multiple feats to his name like savings cats from twolegs but Sirepaw didn't see how it was remotely possible. Applebob was physically weak by his own observations and very much a coward. If there were four of them administering his trial, he might be able to fake his success.

Petalflower was a beautiful she-cat that managed to win the hearts of twolegs, giving them necessities at times during leaf-bare. If it wasn't for his mentor, she would easily be the most attractive cat in the clan. A black tortoiseshell she-cat, a rarity among their kind.

Easywing was the fourth cat. A brutal she-cat that often stole from twolegs outright. Whenever twoleg kits misplaced their items, she would take it for the clan. That's why they have screens and games to play. She used her black pelt to cling to the shadows. Her red eyes gave off a menacing appearance.

At least, his trial wasn't out of the ordinary. He was just another member of the clan. His assessment was different from others. Hottail was horrified when Rapidclaw said, "We're going to the forest." Sirepaw's heart sank when he heard the announcement. He had to survive a week alone after the trial to become a warrior.

"No, please I don't want to," Sirepaw said. He was already fearful of his assessment, going to the forest was sure to be suicidal. A junkyard filled with metal scraps would be better. He heard tales of the four keeping a guard during their assessment making sure they didn't leave the premises. They killed whoever that tried.

"It's our choice," Easywing said. "Don't tell me you're scared."

His own mentor had no choice in where the assessment took place. The most they could do was accompany them until the apprentice at all the lemons. "I'll tag along," Hottail said. It was normal for mentors to simply leave the assessment to Lemonstar's elite cats.

Rapidclaw, Applebob, Petalflower, Easywing each took a lemon in their mouths. Sirepaw was going to eat four lemons. If he lived or died was another matter entirely. He shivered as he noticed they took the largest lemons they could find from the trash.

Hottail carried Sirepaw since he was too weak to walk. He also had to keep his eyes closed. They took a confusing number of twists and turns hoping that the apprentice gets lost and doesn't come back. He hadn't eaten for a week he expected the assessment to not take someplace so far away. Mouthwatering scents assailed his nose. There was so much prey in the forest. Maybe, the savage tales of the forest were overblown, if he knew the forest was like this, he would have run away.

At last, they reached a remote destination within the forest. The four cats set the lemons on the ground. Hottail gently set her apprentice on the ground. "Eat," Petalflower demanded.

Sirepaw had ten minutes to eat four lemons. He knew if he failed, Lemonstar's favorite cats would kill him and his mentor would be powerless to stop them. He was thankful that he starved himself else he would never be able to force the unappetizing fruit down. He bit into one lemon, it was extremely bitter. Under the gaze of the four watchful cats, he couldn't do anything except swallow.

There was three more to go. He tried to eat the next lemon. He had to control his own gag reflex not to vomit. It didn't taste any better than the first one. He spent two precious minutes retching from the experience. "There's only two more to go. You can do it," Hottail said, all she could do was watch and hope that her apprentice survives.

Sirepaw was thankful that they were still alive given everything he heard about the forest. He only had two more lemons to eat. He tried to force down a third lemon despite his stomach's protests even though he wanted to swallow, his body would not agree. He puked onto the forest floor.

"Pathetic," Applebob said.

"You didn't even do the initiation at all," Hottail said. "You're only here because Lemonstar wants you to be here. Shut up and know your place."

Applebob immediately followed her command cowering under the gaze from her blue eyes. Sirepaw felt comfort that his mentor still cared for him. His mentor's confirmation of his suspicions about Applebob shocked him.

"Even so, he tarnished the forest floor, he must clean it," Rapidclaw said.

Rapidclaw gave that command. Sirepaw had no choice but to follow by licking up bile from the soil. At least, the taste of dirt was a rather welcome addition to his taste buds.

One lemon left and two minutes to go before he's brutally killed. Hottail watched as the time dwindled away as Sirepaw cleaned the forest floor. She decided to take drastic measures. She punched Sirepaw in the stomach. He cried out in pain. As his mouth opened, she jammed a lemon inside. She clamped his mouth shut and placed a paw on his nose. He had only one option, to swallow the lemon.

After an agonizing minute without being able to breathe, he finally swallowed the lemon.

"You can have five minutes to exchange last words with your apprentice," Petalflower said.

"How are you feeling?" Hottail asked. Sirepaw couldn't reply, he was trying not to spew the bile already in his mouth. He simply nodded his head wishing they would leave already. After five minutes, she had to leave. "Promise me, you'll come back alive."

Five cats abandoned Sirepaw to die. His mentor watched the previous cats as they died while she was unable to do anything. She decided to believe in the legend of Schrodinger's cat. A cat can always be alive if you didn't see them die. When his tormentors were out of sight, he promptly vomited across the forest floor. He was alone he thought but he had to live here for a week before they would let him return LemonClan.

He was tired, weak and in pain from eating all those lemons. He lacked the energy to even move. He passed out from exhaustion. He dreamed of being able to taste milk once more and being able to partake in the festivities.

* * *

 **A/N: If there's enough hatred or like for this, I'll write a second chapter but complete for now.**


	2. An Arrogant Tail

**A/N: There was enough interest for a second chapter. Enjoy more depravity.**

 **Chapter 2: An Arrogant Tail**

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Lightpaw didn't care for the pouring sky or the foggy air. She wanted this to be the day of her assessment much to her mentor's worry and reluctance. She had keener senses than every cat within the clan. She was the only kit of Bramblestar and Squirrelflight. They were the leader and deputy of ThunderClan although they didn't expect much from her, they treasured her more than anything else, she wanted to prove her worth to everyone in the clan. She had an orange coat just like her mother and the brown stripes of her father. Not even the fog could hide prey from her sharp green eyes.

"Wait up! Lightpaw," her mentor said with ragged breath. Her mentor was Ivypool one of the cats that ended up training in the Dark Forest. Her mentor was extremely reluctant in teaching her combat training or anything of practical significance. Ivypool had a white and black pelt that helped her blend in with the fog. Her blue eyes had difficulties tracking her own apprentice.

It was unfortunate that prey took shelter during the rain. Killing sleeping animals was no fun even if it was for food. She decided to wake them up. She noticed the terror in their eyes as they glanced at their surroundings. She was merciful enough to give them a chance to run. They had several minutes to gain distance not that it mattered, none ever escaped her grasp. She savored the hunt and the adrenaline she felt chasing down prey that thought they were safe. It made the final blow all the sweeter. There were already multiple mice and squirrels added to her ever-growing collection.

She found something unusual, a sleeping rabbit. They normally lived on the border of WindClan. Her assessment was taking place towards the northern end of ThunderClan's territory. She forced the rabbit awake, the sleeping white doe glanced her surroundings and promptly ran away. The doe ran faster than any prey she ever saw.

She decided like always to give them a thirty-minute head start, not even the doe would escape her grasp. Ivypool finally caught up to her apprentice who navigated the terrain with ease. "You're doing that again?" she asked.

"Of course, it's the thrill of the hunt," Lightpaw purred.

"It's gone beyond ThunderClan territory now," her mentor remarked as she saw the rabbit run away.

"I don't care, I will find it," Lightpaw said. "It's not in another clan's territory."

Her mentor couldn't see that far, only believe. "Don't you think that you've caught enough now? Can we go back to camp?"

"Oh, come on, this is fun! Who knows where the rabbit will end up." Lightpaw ignored her mentor's protests, not like Ivypool ever taught her anything useful.

She waited for time to pass like she always did when she hunted. Ivypool tried pleading with her to no avail. As soon as her self-imposed time limit was up she charged after the rabbit leaving her mentor behind.

An unfamiliar offensive scent hit her nostrils. Intrigued, she decided to investigate letting the rabbit get away. She found an unconscious cat that she never saw before. A white tom cat that blended in perfectly with the fog. "Hello?" she called out.

There was no response. As she got closer to the body, the offensive scent got stronger. The apprentice was lying in a pool of his own vomit. She put her head against his chest, it was still beating. Before she could decide what to do, the ground started shaking making her quiver in fear.

The cat opened his eyes. It seemed as if he was in pain. "Don't kill me!" The cat was in no condition to run but tried anyway.

The cat couldn't see well in the fog. He had to run away, he wouldn't become like one of those that never returned to the forest. He nearly ran into the newly formed chasm.

Lightpaw used her strength to prevent the idiot from falling to his death. "What are you doing? Do you want to die?"

"What do you want? Stay away from me!" He yelled, still trying to get away from Lightpaw. He chose a different path this time. He couldn't run far before the adrenaline faded and he collapsed once more.

The earthquake wasn't over just yet. New cracks were still appearing opening massive chasms below. That idiot collapsed close to the edge. She sighed. She dragged the unconscious cat away from the edge of oblivion. She gave up the chance to catch a rabbit just, so this idiot could live. It was infuriating since nothing escaped her grasp until today.

Her mentor was on the other side of the chasm desperately trying to find her. She didn't see a way for her to return to ThunderClan. Lightpaw decided to wait for the idiot to wake up. A few hours passed, and that cat was still asleep. It seemed that she would be starting her vigil early watching an unconscious cat that wasn't even from her own clan. Her mentor still hadn't found her, so she put Ivypool out of her mind.

Finally, the white cat stirred looking at her with the same fear in his eyes. She had enough of his attempts of trying to run away. She forcibly pinned him down. "Who are you?" she asked.

"Don't kill me, I'm sorry." Fear coursed through the white cat.

"Look, idiot, I've wasted time and energy trying to save you. If you want to live, tell me your name," Lightpaw hissed, her patience was running out.

"My- my nn-ame – is Ssirepaw." The cat mewed with quivering whisper. "I – I want to live."

"What's an apprentice like you doing on their own? On the edge of ThunderClan territory? I've also never seen you at gatherings."

"Assessment, can't return to the clan for a week, must survive alone, too weak to hunt," Sirepaw babbled incoherently. He was still too weak from eating all the lemons. The strange she-cat certainly didn't help matters at all. He thought that she would kill him. His stomach growled in hunger due to not eating for a week. The lemons he had earlier hardly quenched his appetite. "Hungry."

Even though the rain had stopped, the land was still foggy, and her mentor was still missing. She seemed to be stuck on this side of the chasm for now with no way to return. She would call on her clan mates for help but that wasn't an option right now. She did value the warrior code, but this seemed like extenuating circumstances. Hunting to eat seemed like a logical decision. She found a weak lethargic apprentice that was horrified by this place which didn't help matters at all. She decided that she would hunt for them both with her sharp skills this should be an easy task. "I'm going to hunt. Stay here." Without checking to see if Sirepaw obeyed her command, she got off Sirepaw and began hunting.

She had a sense of urgency this time. She couldn't afford to play games as she usually did with prey. She saw a twoleg carrying a cage, within a cage contained three fat rabbits. Intrigued, she focused solely on that figure. She heard the twoleg shout something. The twoleg set the cage on the ground and let the rabbits run free. Once three fat rabbits travelled far enough from the twoleg, she started approaching the unsuspecting prey. She killed them swiftly before they could see her coming from within the fog. She relished the brief moments of terror within their eyes. She couldn't carry all three rabbits back, she took a fat grey rabbit in her jaws.

On the way back to Sirepaw she heard a loud twoleg scream and wail far louder than anything she ever heard that came from a twoleg. She continued her way paying it no mind. That idiot apprentice was about to fall into a chasm again. He was crawling towards it at an extremely slow pace. He just couldn't obey instructions! How infuriating. She dropped her prey and rushed to his side. "If you try to run into the chasm again, I'll throw you in myself!" Sirepaw offered no resistance as Lightpaw dragged him across the forest floor. "I got food for us." Her gigantic rabbit was here. "Eat."

Sirepaw took an apprehensive bite even though he was terrified. Actual prey was a rarity in LemonClan, they tasted far better than what he usually could eat. He forgot his reluctance as the taste overwhelmed him, he took increasingly bigger bites. It had been so long since he ate real food.

Lightpaw thought she could enjoy the meal but it vanished before her very eyes and all she got to eat was an ear. She stared into his blue eyes. "What have you done?"

"I'm sorry." He shivered with fear. He didn't know what he did wrong.

She sighed. "Tell me what you're doing here. Stop trying to run away and get yourself killed." She was thankful that he was able to speak coherently for once.

"My clan's assessment required me to eat four lemons and to survive a week without help."

"What is a lemon?"

"Something that causes you great pain if you eat it." He remembered his assessment and how brutal it was. He survived the initial assessment, but he still had to live here for a week before he could return. "I have to live here for a week before I can return to my clan. The forest is full of monsters and no one ever returned."

"I live in here genius," Lightpaw mewed.

"Can you keep me safe?" Sirepaw asked.

She felt insulted that he dared to make that request. "Can't you look after yourself?"

"I'm still too weak to hunt." His body was in pain from the assessment earlier. He was in no condition to hunt for himself.

She weighed her options. This cat had a clan and she couldn't get back to hers right now. Even though it was a clan she never heard of, she thought it would be better than just living alone. The chasm extended as far as the eye could see cutting across the territory she called home. "Seeing as my mentor is nowhere to be found, fine."

The fog finally dissipated, she decided to collect the two rabbits she killed earlier. Sirepaw had eaten the rabbit she brought back while she only had an ear. She saw the twoleg from before still there. It was tearing up the earth. This was something new that she never saw before. She decided to stay around, waiting for the twoleg to leave. The twoleg was making equally horrible sounds as it continued tearing up the earth. It dug a hole placing the dead rabbit inside. She despised that twoleg, not only could it not hunt for itself, it had to steal her kills! The twoleg buried both of her kills, continued making that horrible wail that offended her ears. Since it was only herself that still needed food, she decided to watch.

After a few hours, the twoleg finally left. She proceeded to reclaim her prize. She ate the two rabbits on the spot savoring the taste. The rabbits sated her hunger. She went to look for Sirepaw. He seemed to be trying to hunt unsuccessfully at that. She watched for a few moments from afar seeing prey after prey escape. "Having fun?"

"I can't catch anything." Sirepaw was frustrated tremendously. His white fur had become brown from the mud and unsuccessful catches.

"It's easy," she said. Lightpaw used her senses to find the easiest prey to catch. A family of sleeping mice was nearby. She began to dig at the ground to unearth the mice who easily fell to her claws. "See?"

"Can you teach me?" he asked.

This was the first time Lightpaw wished she paid attention to her mentor's incessant babbling. Her senses were far sharper than any other cat, but she had no idea how to teach someone else how to hunt. "Don't you already know?" she said trying to save face.

"My clan lives in a twoleg city. The prey never ran so fast before," Sirepaw said. It was infuriating, so much prey within reach but he lacked the skill to catch even one.

She sighed. This cat was going to be extremely high maintenance. He was unable to hunt for himself. She was thankful that catching prey was an easy feat for her. "Fine, I'll catch food for you too just lead me to your clan if mine hasn't found me yet. Is there anything you can do?"

"Try to not make you angry?" Sirepaw offered. He didn't know what else he could do. All the tales he heard of this place were that cats who entered never returned. He was well enough to move on his own, but his clan wouldn't welcome him back until a week passed.

"Just don't do anything stupid."

* * *

Three sunrises passed, a full moon was in the sky. It was supposed to be her first gathering as a warrior proudly proclaiming her skills for all the clans to see instead she was away from her clan caring for an apprentice from a clan she never heard of. She hadn't seen any hint of ThunderClan nor her mentor. Sirepaw chose to groom her fur because he couldn't do much else. It was better than licking herself clean she supposed. All Sirepaw could do was eat the prey she caught. Her attempts at trying to teach Sirepaw anything were all in vain. Sirepaw seemed terrified of the forest. He had a scent of fear whenever she was away for too long.

Four more sunrises passed, Sirepaw hadn't grown accustomed to the forest at all. Lightpaw's clan still hadn't found her yet, there was no way back to the other side of the chasm.

"My clan will welcome me back now," Sirepaw announced. He was eager to finally take part in the festivities that his clan held.

"Take me with you," Lightpaw said.

Lightpaw followed Sirepaw as he guided her out of the forest. They crossed many thunderpaths before Lightpaw could finally scent other cats. They were in a twoleg place filled with twoleg constructs. The ground was far different from what she was accustomed to, it was hard as stone. She saw a cat carry a black object in her mouth. She dropped the object at their feet. "You came back!" the foreign cat exclaimed.

"Of course, I did, Hottail, this is my friend Lightpaw. She helped me survive," he said.

"A cat from the forest?" Hottail said. "Can we go there?"

This shocked her, some cat she didn't know wanted to leave their clan to go to the forest. "Doesn't your clan live here?" Lightpaw asked the gold she-cat.

"Only because there's nowhere else to go," Hottail said. "He was my apprentice, he went through the trial because there was no better way to live. I'm thankful he survived. I saw all my other apprentices die before my very eyes unable to save them. I couldn't bear to watch him suffer the same fate."

"Why does your clan try to kill your own cats?" Lightpaw asked.

"The twolegs would come and take us away if we didn't find some way to control who lived or died. This was the fairest way possible," Hottail said. "Can we leave the for forest now?"

"Come on, it's my first day back, I want to enjoy the festivities," Sirepaw said.

"We should have a few hours," Hottail said. She tapped on the black screen, images of multiple cats appeared. She pressed an image and said into the screen, "Sirepaw came back alive. Prepare the festival."

"Excellent," said the screen.

Confused, Lightpaw asked, "What is that?"

"Twolegs drop them sometimes, it allows us to talk to each other from far away," Hottail explained. "I was hoping to take this with us."

Sirepaw could hardly contain his excitement. "This will be the first time I could actually take part in the festivities."

Lemonstar their leader soon found the group. "Who is this?" He pointed to the orange she-cat.

"I am Lightpaw, a friend of Sirepaw," she said.

"You're not from around here. Will you go through the trial?" he asked.

Sirepaw began to panic. He didn't want Lightpaw to suffer the same way he did. "Lemonstar, can she partake in the festival with me instead? Please don't make her eat lemons."

"Fine, if she partakes in the festivities, she won't need to go through the trial," the black cat said.

Sirepaw felt relieved that Lightpaw didn't have to go through the same trial that he did.

"Why can't I ever be part of the festival?" Hottail asked. "It's not fair."

"Because you are weak," Lemonstar said.

As soon as Lemonstar padded away from them. Hottail cursed, "Stupid leader doesn't let me do anything fun." She wanted to be the center of attraction it was far better than having no one that wanted her during her cycles. She wanted to be with a tom so badly on those days, but none wanted her since she wasn't strong enough.

Lightpaw felt a sense of dread after meeting the leader of the clan. She wanted to run away. "Can we go back to the forest? I don't like it here."

"Can't we stay for my warrior name at least?" Sirepaw asked.

"You should feel honored. You get to partake in the festival that even I'm not allowed to. It's a lot of fun!" Hottail exclaimed.

"Fine," Lightpaw said even though she wanted to leave, she supposed that giving this clan a chance wouldn't hurt.

Hottail showed them tons of tricks the black object could do. It was extremely fascinating, Lightpaw wished ThunderClan had something like that. The images displayed upon it shifted constantly. They could play games with said object and the object itself was able to play songs.

"It's time for the festival to begin," a cat said.

Lightpaw followed Sirepaw into the twoleg den. They were all surrounded by cats. They pushed her into the center of the ring. Beside her was a miserable looking she-cat with blue fur. She had patches of her fur missing. The she-cat said, "Not you too. I'm so sorry."

"Do you want to be first or last?" Lemonstar asked.

Sirepaw didn't know what he had to do. "Last," he said. He hoped that he could learn from example.

"I want to leave," Lightpaw said. Her senses told her that this was an extremely bad idea. Multiple cats surrounded her. She was unable to escape on her own.

"You can after the festival. Your friend volunteered you for this," Lemonstar said.

Even now, Hottail said, "You should feel lucky. It's a lot of fun."

"I'm going to leave." She declared. She proceeded to try to walk back the cats that surrounded her. They threw her back to the center.

Lemonstar announced, "Today, we celebrate the survival of our apprentice Sirepaw. He successfully completed the trial, at the end of the festival. He shall receive his warrior name!" The cats all cheered. "Let the festival begin!"

Lightpaw was frantic when a tom cat grabbed her tail from behind. Another cat shoved a dirty paw into her mouth telling her to lick. She had no choice but to suffer abuse. She tried to fight back but her mentor never taught her how to fight other cats. They punished her attempts of resistance with even more pain, so she gave in. She began to cry as they laughed. The miserable she-cat beside her was also crying as they treated her the same. The other cat didn't struggle having long learned the price of defiance.

Many cats took her against her will while she just wanted the torment to end. Lemonstar declared, "Sirepaw step forth and claim one of them."

This was the first time he witnessed the festival first-hand. What happened to the she-cats shocked his soul. He didn't speak out for fear of retribution. "I can't," he said. He understood the truth of what he once thought was milk. He had to resist the urge to vomit as he knew that Hollowheart licked herself clean after these events.

"From tomorrow onwards, you can join them as the entertainment for the festivals," Lemonstar declared. "Gathering dismissed."

They weren't prisoners, neither was Hollowheart. They just left them to their own devices. "Why?" Lightpaw asked. "Why did you bring me here?" She wanted to cry after the abuse she suffered.

"I didn't know, I'm sorry," Sirepaw said, to apologize for what happened to Lightpaw, he started licking Lightpaw's fur clean. "I'm sorry," he said once more.

"I want to go back to the forest," Lightpaw whispered.

It was loud enough for Hollowheart to hear. "Take me with you."

Hottail was still with them. "You two don't know what It's like not to have any toms caring for you. You're both very lucky," she cried.

"They didn't care for us," Lightpaw raged.

"It's still better than having none," she said.

Sirepaw apologized to Lightpaw by licking her clean. Lightpaw was relieved that they were able to leave LemonClan. No one tried to stop them. Four cats entered the forest, and no one cared. Hottail carried that black object with her as they left.

Lightpaw saw Bramblestar and Squirrelflight leading a patrol towards them. "Lightpaw, you're okay," he said. "Do you know how worried I've been?"

Bramblestar didn't need to know the truth of what happened to her. It was better that she kept silent. "I would like my new friends to join ThunderClan. They have nowhere else to go."

The clans banded together to create a tree bridge that led back to ThunderClan. Bramblestar was just happy that his daughter was back.

Instead of being eager to prove her skills. Lightpaw demonstrated her lack of ability in combat. She desperately wanted these skills so if something like that happened again, she could at least send a few toms packing. She also demonstrated that she had no ability how to hunt properly, even though the techniques weren't useful for her, and she didn't need them, any apprentice she might train in the future would.

Adapting to life in the forest was difficult for the former LemonClan cats but they were all willing to try. Sirepaw tried the most to make up for what happened to Lightpaw. She saved his life but he all but ruined hers.

Hottail was able to impress toms with twoleg technology. ThunderClan had something special that none of the other clans had. Hollowheart was glad that she could choose who to mate with from now on, her choice being no one.

Life continued for the clans as it always did.

* * *

 **A/N: This story is finally complete. I'm debating if I should try writing a real Warriors story. Feel free to send ideas by PM only of what my next story should potentially be about.**


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